The bottom line is clear: Our vital interests in Afghanistan are limited and military victory is not the key to achieving them. On the contrary, waging a lengthy counterinsurgency war in Afghanistan may well do more to aid Taliban recruiting than to dismantle the group, help spread conflict further into Pakistan, unify radical groups that might otherwise be quarreling amongst themselves, threaten the long-term health of the U.S. economy, and prevent the U.S. government from turning its full attention to other pressing problems. -- Afghanistan Study Group

Friday, February 19, 2010

NATO is reporting the death of an ISAF soldier from a small arms fire attack in an undisclosed area of southern Afghanistan related to Operation Moshtarak on Thursday, February 18th.

NATO is reporting the death of another ISAF soldier from a small arms fire attack in an undisclosed area of southern Afghanistan related to Operation Moshtarak on Friday, February 19th.

NATO is reporting the deaths of two ISAF soldier from an IED attack in an undisclosed area of southern Afghanistan related to Operation Moshtarak on Thursday, February 18th.

NATO is reporting the death of another ISAF soldier from a IED attack in an undisclosed area of southern Afghanistan related to Operation Moshtarak on Thursday, February 18th.

NATO is reporting the death of another ISAF soldier from a small arms fire attack in an undisclosed area of southern Afghanistan related to Operation Moshtarak on Thursday, February 18th.

Minister says Pakistan will not hand captured Taliban leaders to United States:

Reported security incidents

Kut:#1: Seven Katyusha rockets have been fired at the Delta base in Kut City, but no casualties have been reported thus far, a local security source said on Friday. “Late Thursday (Feb. 18), unknown gunmen fired seven Katyusha rockets at the MNF-run military Delta base (7 km west of Kut),” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. “Police patrol vehicles have headed to al-Shuhadaa area, the site where the rockets were launched from, in search of the attackers,” the source noted.

Al Riyadh:#1: One civilian was wounded on Friday in an improvised explosive device blast in southwest of Kirkuk, according to a security official. “An explosive charge went off on Friday morning (Feb. 19) near a motorcycle in al-Hadiya village in al-Riyadh district, southwest of Kirkuk, injuring the driver and damaging the motorcycle,” Brig. Sarhad Qader, the director of the Kirkuk Districts’ Police Department (KDPD), told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

Mosul:#1: Twenty-three people, including policemen, were wounded when a car bomb went off near a federal police headquarters in western Mosul city on Thursday, a local police source said. “Fifteen among the wounded persons were Iraqi policemen, including four officers,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. “Some of the wounded policemen and civilians are in a critical condition,” he added.

#2: Gunmen killed a man in west Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad on Thursday night, police said.

Tal Afar:#1: A policeman was killed on Friday by armed men while heading to his office in west of Mosul, a security source said. “The cop was killed by gunmen in al-Salam neighborhood in Talafar, west of Mosul,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. “The gunmen opened fire on the policemen while heading for his work from his house,” he added.

Al Anbar Prv:#1: One civilian was wounded on Thursday in a house explosion in southern Falluja, a police source said. “Unknown gunmen blew up a house in Ahsi region in central Amiriyat al-Falluja district, southern Falluja, injuring a passing civilian,” the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.“The blast caused severe material damage to a number of nearby houses,” the source added.

Afghanistan: "The Forgotten War"#1:" MARJAH, Afghanistan Elite Marine recon teams were dropped behind Taliban lines by helicopter Friday as the U.S.-led force stepped up operations to break resistance in the besieged insurgent stronghold of Marjah. About two dozen Marines were inserted before dawn into an area where skilled Taliban marksmen are known to operate, an officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of security concerns.

#2: Other squads of Marines and Afghans, marching south in a bid to link up with Marine outposts there and expand their territory, came under sniper fire and rocket attacks by midday. The rattle of machine-gun fire and the thud of mortars echoed nearby.

#3: Throughout Thursday, U.S. Marines pummeled insurgents with mortars, sniper fire and missiles as gunbattles intensified. Taliban fighters fired back with rocket-propelled grenades and rifles, some of the fire far more accurate than Marines have faced in other Afghan battles.The increasingly accurate sniper fire -- and strong intelligence on possible suicide bomb threats -- indicated that insurgents from outside Marjah are still operating within the town, Nicholson said.

#4: A grenade attack Thursday evening wounded 21 civilians with one of them in critical conditions in Afghanistan's southwestern Nimroz province, police said, Xinhua informs. "A grenade was hurled by unknown men toward a vehicle driven by a government employee in Zaranj city, capital of Nimroz province," provincial police chief Abdul Jabar Watandar told Xinhua. "As result, 21 civilians were wounded."One of the injured was in critical conditions following the attack, which took place in a crowded area, he added.